Should I Feed my Dog BARF?
BARF stands for Bones and Raw Food. It is a diet for dogs that has received a lot of attention over the past few years, but should you feed it to your dogs?
The BARF feeding regimen actually consists of throwing a raw carcass (usually chicken) to your dog and letting him eat it bones and all. The thinking behind this concept is that dogs used to eat raw food like this for thousands of years in the wild. Many are praising the multitude of benefits that the BARF diet provides.
The problem that I have with the BARF diet is that dogs have also been domesticated for thousands of years. They have not had to feed themselves in packs such as wolves and coyotes do for a long time because of the relationships that they have established with man. Man has traditionally fed their dogs leftover scraps from dinner that has been cooked long before the commercialization of bagged dog food.
Dog’s bodies have adapted over time to a convenient lifestyle of being given cooked foods. Today’s dogs can get Salmonella and E. coli poisoning it’s just that they are more resistant to these bacteria than their human counterparts. However, the corn and wheat that are added to bagged dog food have not ever been a source of a dog’s natural diet in history. These ingredients can be triggers for allergies and other ailments.
If you decide that the BARF diet is right for your dog please take caution. Dogs that have weakened immune systems will be much more likely to become ill when eating raw meat. Try to find raw meat that is fresh and comes from a source that you can trust. Also small fragments of bone can be swallowed and their sharp ends can pierce the stomach or intestinal walls. Too much bone may also cause constipation.
April 15th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
Yes dogs have been domesticated for a long time but their digestive system didn’t change at all. They still have a carnivore’s teeth, strong stomach acid like a carnivore and a short digestive system like a carnivore.
Dogs with weakened immune systems are almost always not raw fed. I’ve never had a problem with older meats and e coli and neither has any other raw feeder I know of. That is a myth perpetuated by veterinarians so they can keep you on kibble. Kibble fed dogs need to see a vet more often on the average and they make more money because of it.
April 15th, 2009 at 7:15 pm
One more thing, chicken does not have enough zinc and iron so the majority of the diet should be red meats like beef, pork, lamb, etc.
I believe that BARF feeders know that and teach it. Since you don’t know it you need to read more about BARF but also about other raw diets. It’s the best thing I ever did for my dogs and cats.